Royal Sorrow are prog metal making trio out of Finland who have many similarities to another prog metal making trio (though now quartet) out of Denmark. The ambient melodies and thumping heavy Djent grooves remind me a lot of Vola which is not negative in anyway as I love Vola, and bands like Leprous, Tesseract and others all of whom share DNA with Royal Sorrow.
The album speaks of inner turmoil, the dark side of the human condition and existentialism, showcasing all the facets of these though intelligent compositions and a blending of genres, that are weaved through a thematic structure between the songs.
This is a very modern style of prog metal, Royal Sorrow having formed in 2014, took a long while to make this debut record and while they do a lot of calling out to the bands I've mentioned, they do curate their own experience, from the atmospheric end of things on Metrograve and into poppy realms of Evergreen.
But the chunky groove of Samsara and the electronic thump of Release Your Shadow show the heavier end of what Royal Sorrow do with Eero Maijala's bass doing a lot of the work, all intricate picking and steady groove making. Janne Mieskonen drumming shifting effortlessly between double kicks and jazzy rhythms.
Leaving just Markus Hentunen's guitar to fill in the riffs and take the melodic leads. He is also the singer and impresses with the soulful cleans and especially in the harsh sections where the vocals move from soaring cleans into screams that reminds me of Heavy Devy on a track like Bloodflower, which also inspires comparison's to Leprous, though Looking Glass they are much stronger due to that vocal and that piano.
Royal Sorrow deliver a debut album that takes influence from some of the top talent in their genre and blends them together into a thrilling record from a band that will no doubt see the name Royal Sorrow on everyone's lips in the year to come. 9/10
Last Hyena - Suspect Your Elders (Self Released)
Based in Bristol, Last Hyena deliver a thrilling mix of math and post rock, with off kilter rhythms played in quirky time signatures, put against waves of ambient passages and bristling, reverbed guitar lines. Apart from some gang shouts that appear at the beginning and are reprised at the end of this new EP, the band are totally instrumental, using their music to tell the stories they have written.
Like Mogwai or Bossk or any sort of band that often frequents Arctangent festival, this trio are about creating atmosphere, one that regularly leaves you without a feeling of familiarity, as a groove that they lock into can jerk into something else before settling again. This vein of being uncomfortable is deliberate as the band are attempting to reflect the distrust and anger that is so strong in the world today.
They've done so by drop tuning and making their music heavier, yet still experimental, the unjustness of the world coming through the disquieting moments between the slabs of heavy riffs, the band evolving into a reflection of what the world has become, writing music not to escape but to act as some kind of conduit for your own angst.
With this new EP Last Hyena, showcase the band they are morphing into, retaining their initial influences but now with a much noisier delivery method. 8/10
Ring Van Möbius - Firebrand (Apollon Records Prog)
Ring Van Möbius are dead but they aren't leaving without making a big noise. Inspired by the likes of ELP, Van Der Graaf Generator and Jethro Tull, this is prog rock directly from the 70's as Firebrand is three songs that range from nine and a half minutes to a colossal near twenty five.
It is steeped in synthesizers, specifically: Hammond L100, Spectral Modular Synthesis System, Fender Rhodes, Clavinet D6, Piano, Moog Satellite, Korg MS20, Moog Theremin, Ring Modulator, Space Echo, all of which will be exciting for synth nerds like me but just your regular prog nerd would love will love this record.
It's proper old school prog with a huge lean towards Emerson Lake & Palmer as they are trio based around Thor Erik Helgesen (vocals/synths), Håvard Rasmussen (bass/synths) and Dag Olav Husås (drums/percussion) and they wanted to go out with one last bang, a concept album recorded at Spectral Tape Studio, totally analogue, the best way it can be.
From the opening title track which features all the grandeur for Keith, Greg and Carl, locked into this big grooves, while on The Fever they have all the drama of Yes. Both brilliantly done but it's the epic False Dawn that closes out the Ring Van Mörbius story properly.
That near 25 minute epic featuring every trick in their book, it's a brilliant and bombastic track that finishes Firebrand in epic over the top style and sets off Ring Van Möbius into infinity. 8/10
Dolmen Gate - Echoes Of Ancient Tales (No Remorse Records)
Some epic heavy metal from Portugal now as Dolmen Gate release a follow up to their debut that only came a year ago. Founded in Lisbon on 2021, Dolmen Gate are inspired by Manowar, Omen and Manilla Road putting them with contemporaries such as Smoulder and Eternal Champion.
Echoes Of Ancient Tales sees them return with another record of classic sounding heavy metal with a lot of muscle and machismo behind it, big riffs, bigger vocals, shifting from gallops into powerful choruses, moving into mid-pace rockers such as Rising Whispers. It's not all speed and power though as they can slow things down with a track such as The Prophecy.
The problem is there are countless bands doing this sort of thing and while Dolmen Gate do it quite well, I found a few of the eight songs on this record drag a little for my liking. Still if you like your heavy metal filled with fantasy, these Echoes Of Ancient Tales will have you putting your fist in the air. 6/10
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